Judi Dench has defended her “good friend” Kevin Spacey almost a year after the allegations of sexual assault seemingly ended the disgraced actor's career.
In October 2017, Spacey was accused of assaulting actor Anthony Rapp when he was 14-years-old. More than 30 individuals made further claims against Spacey in the following months which saw him fired from House of Cards and replaced by Christopher Plummer in Ridley Scott's All the Money in the World.
It was the latter that Dench had issues with. Speaking at San Sebastian Intl Film Festival after receiving its highest award, she said: “I can’t approve, in any way, of the fact that – whatever he has done – that you then start to cut him out of the films.”
“Are we to do what happened when he was replaced with Christopher Plummer? Are we to do that throughout history?” she added. “Are we to go back throughout history and anyone who has misbehaved in any way, or who has broken the law, or who has committed some kind of offence, are they always going to be cut out? Are we going to extrude them from our history? I don’t know…”
Dench, who worked with Spacey on 2011 film The Shipping News, continued: “I don’t know about the conditions of it, but nevertheless he is, and was, a most wonderful actor. I can’t imagine what he is doing now. And a good friend.”
The British star is perhaps the most outspoken defender of Spacey since the allegations came to light. his former co-stars, including Benicio del Toro, Guy Pearce and Joel Kinnaman, have all criticised the actor, throwing their support on his accusers.
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